A Delicious Passover

Elegantly simple Passover recipes.

Place the beef stock and water into a medium pot. Whisk and bring to a boil. Add the bay leaves and rosemary. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Discard rosemary and bay leaf. Whisk the red wine with the potato starch. Add to the stock. Add liquid from the cherries, reserving cherries. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, season both sides of the beef with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sear the meat, 8–10 minutes per side. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing on the diagonal into thin slices.

In the same skillet, heat the remaining tablespoon olive oil. Sear the shiitake caps until soft, about 3–4 minutes per side.

When the red-wine sauce is done, stir in the cherries and brandy. Simmer for 3 minutes to cook out some of the alcohol and heat through.

Serve the shiitake atop the steak slices and drizzle with the cherry-brandy sauce.

This is my all-time favorite way to prepare lamb. I save it for special occasions and always receive accolades from my family and friends. Its dramatic presentation makes for an incredible dinner that is sure to impress. The fig sauce turns a gorgeous amber color. The flavors come together in a way that makes you feel like you’ve just dined in the most expensive restaurant, without ever leaving your driveway.

Preheat oven to 450°F

In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, process 2 tablespoons olive oil, rosemary, thyme, and shallots 30–45 seconds, or until a thick paste forms.

Rub the herb paste into the lamb. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium oven-proof skillet. Add the lamb, fat side down, and cook over high heat for 5 minutes. Turn the lamb and cook for an additional minute so that both sides are brown.

Add ½ cup wine to the skillet. Place the skillet in the oven and roast for 18 minutes. If your skillet is not oven-proof, cover the handles with foil.

Remove the skillet from the oven. Place the lamb on a platter; cover with foil to keep warm. Add the remaining ½ cup of wine and the figs to the skillet. Bring to a simmer. Use a spatula to loosen the brown bits from the pan. Add the stock and simmer for 3–4 minutes. The sauce will thicken and become a nice amber color. Pour sauce over the lamb and serve.

Française is generally a preparation reserved for chicken or thinly sliced veal. I thought I would try it with cauliflower, one of my favorite vegetables. The results? C’est magnifique!

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Cover 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Trim the cauliflower to the base so that it sits flat on the cutting board. Trim off the two outer ends. Make 3 (¾-inch) lengthwise cuts to yield 3–4 large steaks from each head of cauliflower. Keep the remaining pieces that fall off in flat intact bunches, as much as possible.

In a shallow bowl or pie plate, stir together the 1 cup potato starch, 1?2 teaspoon salt, and 1?4 teaspoon pepper. Dredge the large cauliflower steaks, one at a time, in the potato starch mixture, shaking off the excess. Toss the smaller pieces in the potato starch and shake off excess. Lightly beat eggs in another shallow bowl or pie plate. Dip the cauliflower into the eggs to coat, letting the excess drip off; then place in single layers on prepared cookie sheets.

Once all the cauliflower is battered, spray the tops of the cauliflower steaks and pieces with olive oil-flavored cooking spray. Season with salt and pepper. Place into the hot oven and bake for 20–25 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender.

In a medium skillet, melt the margarine. Whisk in the 1 tablespoon potato starch. Add the juice of the lemon, wine, and stock. Season with ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes or until thickened and translucent. Stir in the parsley. Taste and re-season as needed. Spoon sauce over the cauliflower.

Acorn squash, like all winter squash, can be dangerous to cut. I ask the workers in the produce department at the supermarket to cut them in half and wrap them in plastic wrap. If you can find only large acorn squash, just cut the squash in half. After they are softened by cooking, you can cut each half in half again for more manageable servings.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Place the acorn squash cut-side-down into a baking pan. Pour 1?2 inch of water around the squash. Bake 45 minutes.

In a saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. When sugar dissolves, reduce heat and add the cranberries. Simmer for 15 minutes. Drain off liquid. Remove the berries to a sheet of waxed paper. Separate with a fork. Set aside.

Remove squash from oven and pour off the water from the pan. Turn the squash cut-side-up. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, honey, ginger, cinnamon, margarine, salt, and pepper. Divide mixture evenly among the squash halves. Return to the oven for another 30–35 minutes, basting with sauce, until squash is soft.

Toss the cranberries with a little sugar to coat them. Remove the squash to a platter and fill each cavity with frosted cranberries.

For a light, ethereal ending to a meal, try this lemon mousse. The lemon color and flavor are both complemented by the fresh berries. In this recipe, homemade lemon curd is transformed into mousse with whipped cream.

Combine the sugar and potato starch in a heavy medium-sized pot. Whisk in the eggs, egg yolks, lemon zest, and lemon juice until blended.

Turn the heat to medium and cook the mixture, whisking continuously, until it is thick and bubbly, about 3–4 minutes. Whisk for 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat.

Place a strainer over a medium bowl. Pour the lemon mixture through the strainer, using your whisk to push it through. The zest and egg solids will get caught in the strainer and should be discarded.

Lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the lemon curd, touching the surface so that it does not form a skin. Place in the freezer to quickly cool while you whip the cream.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, beat the cream on high speed until it is thick and stiff peaks form. Slowly beat in the confectioner’s sugar until it is all incorporated.

Remove the lemon curd from the freezer. Using a spatula, fold in one-third of the whipped cream to lighten the mixture. Fold in remaining cream until it is an even, pale-yellow color. Refrigerate until needed.

Put a handful of blueberries or raspberries into each of 6 wine glasses or other stemmed glasses. Top with lemon mousse. Serve chilled.

Crumb Cake

Dairy or parve•Makes 12 servings•non-Gebrokts

When my friend Limor Decter heard I was doing a Passover cookbook, she immediately forwarded me a file of Pesach recipes from her friend Tsippy Nussbaum, who loves Passover food. Tsippy was kind enough to allow me to include this recipe, her favorite of the bunch. The ladyfingers that she recommends are from an 8-ounce box; they are non-gebrokts and made by Oberlander. If you can’t find them, you can use another kind of Passover boxed cookie. I used a whole (2.25–ounce) box of Lieber's brand Sugar-Coated Egg Kichel and the recipe worked out fine.

Featured at Aish.com:

About the Author

Susie Fishbein is the author of the bestseller cookbook Kosher By
Design and the just released Kosher By Design Entertains (ArtScroll
Mesorah Publications). She holds an MS degree from Brooklyn College and resides in Livingston NJ with her husband and four children. She is currently working on a new volume for children "Kosher By Design - Kids in the Kitchen", due for release in Nov. 2005.

Visitor Comments: 3

(2)
Susan Sobel,
March 28, 2015 5:43 PM

Amazing...

OMG! If I could learn to cook gourmet kosher style meals with an artistic and beautiful presentation for my beloved, in the future,there is hope I could keep kosher and create more romantically, and sensually inspired delicious meal on Shabbat and every day! Thank you.

(1)
Esther Shoshana,
December 20, 2010 11:35 AM

Unhealthy!

Why do so many of these recipes have margarine? isn't there another choice? i want to eat food--not chemicals!

Jg,
March 19, 2013 10:13 PM

Agreed

I agree. I want recipes with oil or even applesauce, but no margarine or butter, I avoid all those recipes. That's why I have trouble finding good recipe books- most things I will never make.

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I live in rural Montana where the Cholov Yisrael milk is difficult to obtain and very expensive. So I drink regular milk. What is your view on this?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Jewish law requires that there be rabbinic supervision during the milking process to ensure that the milk comes from a kosher animal. In the United States, many people rely on the Department of Agriculture's regulations and controls as sufficiently stringent to fulfill the rabbinic requirement for supervision.

Most of the major Kashrut organizations in the United States rely on this as well. You will therefore find many kosher products in America certified with a 'D' next to the kosher symbol. Such products – unless otherwise specified on the label – are not Cholov Yisrael and are assumed kosher based on the DOA's guarantee.

There are many, however, do not rely on this, and will eat only dairy products that are designated as Cholov Yisrael (literally, "Jewish milk"). This is particularly true in large Jewish communities, where Cholov Yisrael is widely available.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein wrote that under limited conditions, such as an institution which consumes a lot of milk and Cholov Yisrael is generally unavailable or especially expensive, American milk is acceptable, as the government supervision is adequate to prevent non-kosher ingredients from being added.

It should be added that the above only applies to milk itself, which is marketed as pure cow's milk. All other dairy products, such as cheeses and butter, may contain non-kosher ingredients and always require kosher certification. In addition, Rabbi Feinstein's ruling applies only in the United States, where government regulations are considered reliable. In other parts of the world, including Europe, Cholov Yisrael is a requirement.

There are additional esoteric reasons for being stringent regarding Cholov Yisrael, and because of this it is generally advisable to consume only Cholov Yisroel dairy foods.

In 1889, 800 Jews arrived in Buenos Aires, marking the birth of the modern Jewish community in Argentina. These immigrants were fleeing poverty and pogroms in Russia, and moved to Argentina because of its open door policy of immigration. By 1920, more than 150,000 Jews were living in Argentina. Juan Peron's rise to power in 1946 was an ominous sign, as he was a Nazi sympathizer with fascist leanings. Peron halted Jewish immigration to Argentina, introduced mandatory Catholic religious instruction in public schools, and allowed Argentina to become a haven for fleeing Nazis. (In 1960, Israeli agents abducted Adolf Eichmann from a Buenos Aires suburb.) Today, Argentina has the largest Jewish community in Latin America with 250,000, though terror attacks have prompted many young people to emigrate. In 1992, the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires was bombed, killing 32 people. In 1994, the Jewish community headquarters in Buenos Aires was bombed, killing 85 people. The perpetrators have never been apprehended.

Be aware of what situations and behaviors give you pleasure. When you feel excessively sad and cannot change your attitude, make a conscious effort to take some action that might alleviate your sadness.

If you anticipate feeling sad, prepare a list of things that might make you feel better. It could be talking to a specific enthusiastic individual, running, taking a walk in a quiet area, looking at pictures of family, listening to music, or reading inspiring words.

While our attitude is a major factor in sadness, lack of positive external situations and events play an important role in how we feel.

[If a criminal has been executed by hanging] his body may not remain suspended overnight ... because it is an insult to God (Deuteronomy 21:23).

Rashi explains that since man was created in the image of God, anything that disparages man is disparaging God as well.

Chilul Hashem, bringing disgrace to the Divine Name, is one of the greatest sins in the Torah. The opposite of chilul Hashem is kiddush Hashem, sanctifying the Divine Name. While this topic has several dimensions to it, there is a living kiddush Hashem which occurs when a Jew behaves in a manner that merits the respect and admiration of other people, who thereby respect the Torah of Israel.

What is chilul Hashem? One Talmudic author stated, "It is when I buy meat from the butcher and delay paying him" (Yoma 86a). To cause someone to say that a Torah scholar is anything less than scrupulous in meeting his obligations is to cause people to lose respect for the Torah.

Suppose someone offers us a business deal of questionable legality. Is the personal gain worth the possible dishonor that we bring not only upon ourselves, but on our nation? If our personal reputation is ours to handle in whatever way we please, shouldn't we handle the reputation of our nation and the God we represent with maximum care?

Jews have given so much, even their lives, for kiddush Hashem. Can we not forego a few dollars to avoid chilul Hashem?

Today I shall...

be scrupulous in all my transactions and relationships to avoid the possibility of bringing dishonor to my God and people.

With stories and insights,
Rabbi Twerski's new book Twerski on Machzor makes Rosh Hashanah prayers more meaningful. Click here to order...